


stolen lullaby

by persnicketyphantom



Category: Coco (2017)
Genre: Gen, also tell me if any of the spanish i used was incorrect! i'm not a native speaker, anyway enough!!!! please enjoy, but i wanted to put my take on this on paper, sorry if hector seems weird, this is probably super ooc
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-06
Updated: 2017-12-06
Packaged: 2019-02-11 06:36:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,410
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12929601
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/persnicketyphantom/pseuds/persnicketyphantom
Summary: Héctor is surprised to hear a familiar song.





	stolen lullaby

Héctor had gotten used to being dead. 

It had been quite a while since his unfortunate demise (a chorizo? Really Héctor?). He had gotten settled into a routine, living in his little shack on the outskirts of the Land of the Dead. He had already gone through all of the typical emotions: shock at being dead, awe at how big and bright this afterlife was, happiness thinking he would be able to see his family once a year. Sadness, discovering no one had put his photo on the ofrenda. 

Slowly being forgotten....well, he was starting to get used to that idea too. Día de los Muertos came and went one year, then the next, then the one after that. By the fourth year, he felt like giving up. But something told him to just keep pushing, maybe they'd let him through this time, maybe his family remembered, Imelda, Coco-

For almost 22 years, Héctor persisted. He couldn't stop trying, not when there was still a chance of seeing Coco again. He was determined: every year he tried something new. A fancy wig. A patterned dress. The guards caught him every time, but he just kept coming back. Yet sometimes....Héctor had to admit, he often felt like giving up. 

Héctor sighed and gave a lazy strum of his guitar. He was sitting along the side of the street, idly plucking away, lost in thought. Héctor liked listening to the other dead folks roaming around. Sure, he was a pretty _spirited_ guy (wink wink), but he realized quickly it was hard to relate to everyone else with the Final Death feeling a little too close for comfort. He stuck to observing, on days like this. 

People were milling about, chatting, laughter echoing over the crowds. Héctor took a deep breath, beginning to play some chords with more fervor. It wasn't long until he attracted an audience. 

"Not bad, amigo!" 

Slightly startled, Héctor looked towards the sound. A friendly-looking skeleton strolled up to him, with a wide-brimmed hat and colorful shirt. A broad smile stretched across his skull.

"You're pretty handy with that guitar! Were you a musician?" 

"Oh, uh, sí," Héctor replied, glancing back to his guitar and continuing to strum. 

The spirit chuckled goodnaturedly. "Well, it definitely shows, compadre. You could even play for de la Cruz!"

Héctor suddenly stopped and looked up. "De la Cruz?"

"Ernesto de la Cruz? Don't you know him? The most famous musician in México? None of the living would ever stop talking about him, but he's just died. Poor man took a giant bell to the head! Pity, eh? His fans are going crazy up in the city."

Héctor was reeling. Ernesto was famous? He had fans? Héctor was in shock. All this time, he thought Ernesto must have given up on music. It looks like Ernesto forged ahead without him.

Just as quickly as the anger came, Héctor pushed it away. Ernesto had been his beloved friend! That would not change with death. Why should Ernesto have stopped performing without him? He had every right to go solo the way he did. Héctor was happy for Ernesto's success.

And if Ernesto had kept in touch with Imelda....

"Amigo? Are you alright?" 

Héctor snapped back to the present. "What?"

The friendly man was still in front of him, now looking at him quizzically. "You were thinking too much. What's on your mind?"

"Oh, er...." Héctor struggled for a moment to collect himself. "Do you know where I can find Ernesto? Um....de la Cruz?" 

"Oh! He's going to have a concert today. Welcoming him here, you know? Heard it'll be up in the city."

The city. Héctor steeled his nerves. "Gracias," he said, flashing a quick smile in the man's direction. Picking up his guitar, Héctor shook out his bones and hurried away.

It had been a while since Héctor had ventured into the heart of the Land of the Dead like this. He had explored when he first arrived, but after a while it just lost its appeal. All the glitz, the glamour, the lights....seeing it left a bitter taste in Héctor's mouth. He couldn't think about it, not when he was so focused on seeing Coco.

The farther in he went, the noise around him got louder and louder. At first, Héctor thought it was the normal din of the crowd, but he soon realized something more was happening. Excited shouts were filling the air. Hundreds of people had gathered around the stage in the central plaza. A microphone was set up, and various spirits were rushing around preparing for a show. 

Ernesto's concert! Héctor began to hurry his steps, breaking into a brisk stride. He didn't want to miss it. It seemed like Ernesto would be starting soon; maybe he should wait to talk to him afterwards? Héctor was sure he'd be pleased to see an old friend. 

Héctor began using the back of his guitar to push his way into the crowd, moving closer and closer to the stage. If he was near the front, surely Ernesto would notice him? He might look different, being a skeleton and all, but....Ernesto could recognize him on sight. Fame can't have changed him _that_ much, Héctor grinned to himself.

Without warning, fireworks exploded above the stage. The crowd began screaming with delight. Caught off guard, Héctor shielded his eyes, looking away from the stage towards the spectacular light show above. 

_"Remember me...._

_Though I have to say goodbye...."_

What? Jaw dropping (literally) in surprise, Héctor whipped his head back to the stage, but felt a shove from behind that sent him sprawling on the ground. 

"Ow...."

Looking back up, he saw that the crowd had begun pushing forward in an attempt to get closer to the performer.

Disoriented, Héctor stumbled back to his feet, straining to listen. He must have misheard.

_"For even if I'm far away,_

_I hold you in my heart...."_

Héctor couldn't believe it. There was Ernesto! Plain as day, he was up there smirking and winking at the crowd, while dancers moved around him and he sang at the top of his lungs. 

And that song....

_"I sing a secret song to you,_

_Each night we are apart...."_

Héctor was frozen in his spot. Ernesto continued to sing, and the crowd was jostling Héctor about as they cheered, but Héctor could not move. That was his song! His song for Coco....Héctor was overcome with memories of lulling his little girl to sleep with their nightly duet. What was Ernesto doing? Why was he singing his song?

It was different, somehow, in Ernesto's voice. The meaning had changed. Ernesto had taken Héctor's private little lullaby and made it into a love ballad, made it fast and flashy and....well, not _Héctor._

"Everyone give it up for Ernesto de la Cruz!" 

Héctor jolted back to the present. It was over. 

A brightly smiling woman had sidled up to the microphone. "What an amazing performance, everybody! Let's give him a hand!"

The clapping thundered around Héctor. To him, it was like nails on a chalkboard. His grip on his guitar grew tighter and tighter.

"Thank you, everyone!"

Ernesto!

"That song, 'Remember Me,' well," Ernesto smiled sheepishly and looked down. "I hold it very close to my heart."

What? Héctor's head was starting to spin. That was his song! Was Ernesto taking credit for it?

"It's a song about love," Ernesto continued, "and passion!" With a riff on the guitar, the screaming just grew louder. His pristine white outfit was practically glowing under the lights, making his skeletal form look almost godlike. Ernesto's smug look was facing Héctor from screens all around the stage. 

This song, for his Coco....Ernesto had butchered it. He had taken it from him, and twisted it into something so cheesy, so generic-

Héctor had to get away. 

"I wrote this song for all of you, mis amores!"

Héctor let out a frustrated yell. Shoving people out of his way, Héctor ran from the stage, out of the city, away from Ernesto. No credit, not so much as a word of acknowledgement....it was like Ernesto had written him out of existence. His beloved friend, stealing his music for his own. Héctor would not return to him. Not any time soon. He shouldn't have showed up. He was done.

At the stage, Ernesto's adoring fans didn't notice the broken, trampled guitar under their feet.

**Author's Note:**

> i hope you liked it :)
> 
> i love getting feedback!


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